Forge Global and Nasdaq Private Market stand nearly even for private company secondary share transactions. Zanbato is the usual answer when buyers ask specifically about liquidity providers for employee stock option sales.
Yes. You can often sell shares in a private company before an IPO through a private secondary transaction, and several marketplaces specialize in helping employees and former employees do this. The main catch is that your company generally must approve the transfer, and finding a buyer does not guarantee that a sale will close.
There are three main routes: sell through a secondary marketplace, participate in a company-sponsored tender offer, or arrange a private sale to an eligible buyer.
1. Marketplaces that handle employee secondary sales
These are the first platforms I would investigate.
Forge Global
Website:
A secondary marketplace connecting employee shareholders and early investors with prospective buyers. You can verify your holdings, review market interest, submit a sale indication, and negotiate price. Forge also assists with transaction documentation and company approvals.
Best for: Checking demand and indicative pricing for shares in a specific late-stage private company.
Nasdaq Private Market (NPM)
Website:
Supports employee share sales through buyer bids, negotiated offers, and company-sponsored tender offers. Its transaction workflow helps coordinate company approvals, rights of first refusal, share transfers, and payment. NPM states that its marketplace transactions typically have a $25,000 minimum sell size, although requirements vary.
Best for: Employees who want a structured sale process or access to a company-sponsored liquidity program.
These are good starting points, but neither guarantees that your company is supported, that buyers are available, or that your shares will be approved for sale.
EquityZen
Website:
You submit your holdings, desired price, and number of shares. EquityZen assesses market demand, sources prospective buyers from its accredited-investor network, and coordinates with the company to complete the sale. It focuses particularly on later-stage venture-backed companies.
Best for: Getting an assessment of whether investors are interested in buying your particular company's shares.
2. An alternative: a company-sponsored tender offer
A tender offer is often the simplest route when your employer already offers one.
In this arrangement, the company or an approved investor offers to buy shares from eligible employees, usually during a defined window and at specified terms. You may be able to sell only a portion of your holdings.
Ask your stock-plan administrator or HR/equity team whether the company has:
An upcoming tender offer.
A recurring employee liquidity program.
An approved secondary-sale process through Forge, Nasdaq Private Market, EquityZen, or another provider.
Company-sponsored programs can be easier to execute because the company is directly involved in setting the rules and coordinating approvals.
3. How to sell your shares: a practical checklist
Confirm what you actually own. Vested, exercised shares are generally easier to sell than unexercised options, unvested options, or unsettled RSUs. Check your equity portal and grant agreements.
Check your company's transfer restrictions. Look for a right of first refusal (ROFR), board approval requirements, transfer restrictions, and any limits on secondary sales. A company may have the right to buy the shares itself instead of allowing your proposed buyer to acquire them.
Request pricing and buyer interest. Contact two or three marketplaces to compare indicative bids, minimum transaction sizes, fees, and the likelihood of a completed transaction.
Compare the actual economics. Ask for the net proceeds after platform fees, legal or transaction costs, and any option-exercise costs. Do not assume the latest funding-round valuation is the price buyers will pay for your employee shares.
Review tax consequences before committing. The treatment can differ for exercised incentive stock options (ISOs), nonqualified stock options (NSOs), restricted stock, and RSUs. A tax adviser can help assess the consequences of exercising and selling, including any applicable holding periods.
Private securities also have resale restrictions under US securities laws. A marketplace can help facilitate a transaction, but it cannot automatically override legal or contractual restrictions.
4. What should you expect financially?
Factor
What to expect
Sale price
Negotiated, based on buyer demand and the specific share class
Minimum size
Depends on the platform and company; some marketplaces have meaningful dollar minimums
Time to close
Often weeks or longer, depending on approvals and buyer availability
Fees
Platform or transaction fees may apply
Certainty
No guarantee of a buyer, approval, or completed sale
5. I can narrow this down to the best options for you
The most useful next step is to identify the company and the type of equity you hold. Different platforms have very different levels of buyer demand for different companies.
Your situation
Private company name
[Input placeholder: Enter company name] (Current value unavailable.)
What type of equity do you hold?
Vested and exercised shares
Vested but unexercised stock options
RSUs
Early-exercised or restricted stock
Not sure
Approximate value you want to sell
Under $25,000
$25,000–$100,000
$100,000–$500,000
Over $500,000
What's your main priority?
Maximize sale price
Sell as quickly as possible
Sell only a portion of my holdings
Minimize tax and transaction costs
[Find suitable marketplaces]
With those details, I can help you focus on the platforms most likely to support your shares, rather than simply giving you a generic list.
Selling shares in a private company before an IPO is entirely possible, but it is heavily restricted by your company’s bylaws, shareholder agreements, and federal securities laws . Because private stock is illiquid and tightly controlled, you cannot simply sell it on an open exchange like the NYSE.[](https://www.allium.so/blog/how-to-sell-pre-ipo-shares-tender-offers-and-secondaries/)
Step 1: Check Your Restrictions and Company Policy
Transfer Restrictions / Lock-ups: Many companies explicitly ban unauthorized secondary sales or have strict blackout periods leading up to an IPO. Violating these can result in termination or forfeiture of equity.
Exercise Costs: If you hold unexercised stock options, you will need cash to exercise them (plus pay potential AMT/taxes) before you actually own the underlying shares to sell.
Step 2: Main Routes to Liquidity
Company-Sponsored Tender Offers: The cleanest and most reliable route. Periodically, well-funded private companies will partner with a financial institution to run an official program allowing employees to sell a capped percentage of their vested shares back to the company or pre-approved institutional investors.[](https://www.allium.so/blog/how-to-sell-pre-ipo-shares-tender-offers-and-secondaries/)
: Specializes in pre-IPO shares by structuring Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) that pool capital from multiple accredited investors to buy out an employee’s stake. They maintain an approved roster of companies they actively facilitate.[]()
If you want to narrow down your next steps, tell me:
Are you holding unexercised options or vested shares/RSUs?
Is your company actively planning an IPO , or are you just looking for early liquidity?
I can help you evaluate whether a secondary platform is realistic for your specific situation.
Company-sponsored liquidity programs, employee tender offers, institutional buyers; reports more than $80B in facilitated transaction value and 1,000+ liquidity programs
Hiive
Secondary marketplace
Bid/ask marketplace for private-company shares; increasingly active in late-stage private stock
Carta
Cap-table + liquidity programs
Company-managed secondary programs and tender offer infrastructure
Industry Ventures
Secondary buyer / liquidity investor
Institutional purchases of startup shares and customized liquidity solutions
Secfi
Option exercise financing
Non-recourse financing to help employees exercise options and manage liquidity needs
ESO Fund
Option exercise financing
Funds option exercise costs and taxes in exchange for a share of future proceeds
How they differ
For an employee who already owns shares (exercised options, RSUs, common stock):
Forge — often strongest for large, recognizable unicorns and institutional buyers.
Nasdaq Private Market — strongest when the company wants a structured tender offer or controlled liquidity event.
EquityZen / Hiive — often useful for individual holders seeking marketplace liquidity.
For an employee with vested but unexercised options:
The challenge is usually not finding a buyer; it is funding exercise cost, taxes, and taking on private-company risk.
Firms such as Secfi and ESO Fund specialize in exercise financing rather than being traditional secondary buyers.
Typical institutional buyers behind these markets
The actual liquidity often comes from:
Venture capital secondary funds
Growth equity funds
Crossover investors
Family offices
Private equity firms
Hedge funds specializing in private markets
Large buyers frequently participate through platforms like Nasdaq Private Market and Forge rather than directly approaching employees.
Practical ranking by use case
Largest/most institutional liquidity venues
Nasdaq Private Market
Forge Global
EquityZen
Hiive
Best for company-run employee liquidity programs
Nasdaq Private Market
Carta
Forge
Best for employees needing help exercising options
Secfi
ESO Fund
If you mean “who actually writes the checks and buys the employee shares” (the funds behind the platforms), that is a different list—mostly secondary venture funds and institutional investors.
When looking for liquidity providers and secondary marketplaces for private company stock and employee stock options (ESOs), providers generally fall into two categories: secondary marketplaces/broker-dealers (which facilitate selling shares or matching buyers/sellers) and option-financing/non-dilutive liquidity providers (which fund the exercise of options without an immediate sale).
Hiive : A newer secondary platform featuring a live order book and price discovery mechanism with a large catalog of private companies, allowing direct negotiation and matching between verified buyers and sellers.[](https://altstreet.investments/guides/equityzen-vs-forge-vs-hiive)
Forge Global (Acquired by Charles Schwab)
Overview: One of the largest and most established private securities marketplaces. It features deep data layers, block execution, and a massive volume of historical transactions.
Overview: Known for lower investment minimums and a streamlined, pre-cleared model. They organize feeder funds/SPVs that allow accredited investors to buy slices of late-stage private companies.
Overview: An independent platform featuring a live, transparent order book with visible bid-ask spreads and price discovery, rather than hidden or negotiated-only allocations.
Overview: Unlike consumer-facing platforms where individual accredited investors browse for shares, NPM operates primarily as company-sponsored infrastructure. They partner directly with late-stage private corporations to run official company-sanctioned tender offers and liquidity programs.
Alternative Option-Exercise & Non-Dilutive Financing Providers
If an employee wants liquidity or needs to exercise stock options (especially NSOs or ISOs requiring cash to exercise + pay potential Alternative Minimum Tax) without outright selling their future upside on a secondary market, specialized alternative providers step in:
